Another New Beginning
by Brylan
Summary: Alternate Universe. Different kids, semi-different powers, same goal. Save the world.
1. Chapter 1

**Note: **I've revised chapters one and two (because I am never satisfied). Also I'd kind of posted on a whim, and I realized that they sucked. Chapter three will be up soon. Oh, and the Andalites are not gone. It's just in this universe they've been a little bit, well, wiped out. =) The Ax equivalent will be here eventually. He will be an Andalite. Yeerks are here too. You'll see what happened to them.

**Loveanimorph10468: **Thanks for the review. =) I assume you're asking where I came up with the alien names? Whatever pops into my head when I think of what they look like is what I call them. And if you mean the names of the kids, they were just names that seemed to fit.

**Note 2: **One more thing, I would never hold my story for review ransom, because it's annoying, but I can see why people do. No reviews can be quite discouraging. Constructive criticism would be great. I could defiantly stand to become a better writer.

**Chapter One**

My name is Dustin.

Just Dustin. No last name. Not one that I can freely give. I could tell you my last name. Really, I want to tell you. In fact I would like nothing more than to tell you, because revealing my last name would mean that everything in my life was okay. It would mean that I was normal.

However, I am not normal.

And my life is not okay.

My last name is so much more than just that. For me, it is either freedom…or death. Not only that, I can't tell you what school I go to, the name of my favorite hangout, not even where my family plans to vacation this summer. I can expose nothing of myself, because the Paquiin are everywhere. And when I say everywhere, I do mean everywhere. If they knew anything about me, they could find me. You can just assume that that would be a very bad thing. What the Paquiin do to those who oppose them is too horrible to imagine, and we oppose them in a big way.

When everything is all over, I want those left free to know the truth.

It's interesting, keeping a journal. Writing down and elaborating on my thoughts and feelings. Before now it's never been a priority. My days came and went and I never felt a need to record or reflect on them. Why bother? Now I have no choice. At least that's how I feel. If I…well, in case something happens to me, I guess I just want those close to me, whether they're themselves or not, to know the truth. The truth about what I've been through, what I've done. And maybe with writing I can keep myself from going completely insane. Keep it together long enough for the Gowon to come and help us. That's what they said they would do, help us.

They'll come.

They have to…

You know, despite what you're probably thinking, my life used to be normal. _I _used to be normal. It's frightening to think how quickly life can jump from one path to another. One small event leads to the next and suddenly everything you've become familiar with is altered. The life you had is replaced by one you don't want. One you couldn't possibly have prepared for. At one point, so long ago I hardly remember, I was your standard teenage guy: average grades, a messy room, girl trouble, too many video games, good friends and a pile of homework up to my forehead. That was my life. That was me.

Now, I am a soldier, seeing the world through the eyes of a stranger. A stranger who's cold, slowly becoming lifeless. I can feel it sometimes. Like a light in me is slowly dying. And I know that sounds corny, but in this situation it seems to fit. I don't feel much like myself anymore.

I'm a soldier in an impossible war that spanned galaxies just to reach it's peak on our planet. A war, I'm ashamed to say, on which we may be the losing side.

My friends and I fight alone, risking it all for a world that has no clue. I will admit I'm afraid. I'd have to be crazy not to be. Fear and death haunt me every day, and without the others…I honestly don't think I could have taken it for long.

So, now that I've sufficiently ruined your day, let me explain the origins of this gloom and possible doom. Everything started after a Friday trip to the mall.

Miller and I were hanging out, something we do every Friday. He and I have been best friends since the playpen and during the course of our friendship, when we were older of course, it became a given that we would head to the mall after school before the weekend. A tradition we upheld for years no matter what: money, no money, homework, no homework…grounded, not grounded. That last one was mostly a problem for Miller. That night we weren't doing much in the way of anything interesting. I wasn't really in the mood to hang out. I hadn't exactly had the best day ever.

Earlier that day my girlfriend of about a year had broken up with me. She thought the middle of fourth period was the best time to mention that she thought we'd be better seeing other people. Her exact words?

"I think we'd defiantly have more fun not seeing each other anymore." She'd ended the sentence with a smile, like she'd just told me I had a nice shirt.

I'm not an idiot. I knew who it was she wanted to see and would have been surprised to learn she hadn't already started. I said okay and went on with my day, but it wasn't until the mall that it really caught up with me.

It wasn't a big deal. Or that's what I kept telling myself. I hadn't been in love with her, but I'd gotten comfortable with our status and it just seemed to end so suddenly.

Well, like I said, not a big deal. She lingered in my thoughts though.

After a short while Miller and I ended up hanging out in the food court staring at empty food trays. Well, I was starring and Miller was just being annoyed.

"How long do you really expect me to watch you mope around?" Miller's arms were crossed, his eyes narrow. "Really, dude, I think it's for the best. You should be happy Godzilla dumped you." I glared at him.

"Can't I be aloud at least one day to think about it before I just block it out?" I asked sarcastically. He adjusted his glasses.

"I just don't think dating daemons from hell is such a good idea." he whispered defiantly. I'd heard him. And normally I would have said something to defend her. But it was all nothing I hadn't heard before.

Miller and Carla, my ex, had never gotten along. Where I found Miller entertaining, she saw him as a complete waste of space. I've never fully understood why and when one day I asked she'd only said, "I just don't like him. He thinks he's funny, he's not funny." When I questioned Miller all he said was, "Because she doesn't like me. She thinks I'm not funny. I'm hilarious." I tried once to explain to her that Miller could be a little outside of the box when it came to some of the things he says. She got angry and told me he was out of visual contact with the box. In that moment I knew that he'd said something to her, and that it hadn't been any good. Thinking it would eventually fade I left it. The decision turned out to be a huge mistake because the animosity between them continued to grow. So much so that when I told Miller that we were done with each other, he'd actually done a dance…right in the middle of the hallway. One he'd obviously been saving for just this occasion. When I didn't join in the celebration he went sour. We were both in a funk when we reached the mall.

"Don't want to talk about it." I said standing up. "Let's get out of here."

Without moving he said, "I swear you're hair gets ten shades darker when you're angry. You're like a…" he thought. "Like a hairy mood ring." Suddenly my mood lightened. When Miller says things like this out of the blue, he gets a specific look on his face. Like he has no clue he's saying what he's saying, and the universe just feeds him the words whenever appropriate…or inappropriate.

"Let's just get out of here."

"No way," He stayed seated. "We haven't even hit the arcade yet. Just because you want to go cryin' to mama about your break up with Lucifer…"

"I'm just not in the mood, alright?" I said too quickly slipping back into angry. "And, dude, stop calling her crazy names. I just don't want to talk about it at all." Expecting to be called a Drama Queen, I turned ready to leave whether he followed me or not. No sooner had I taken a step I bumped into a kid from my school, Adam.

Adam was…I mean, I guess he still is a weird guy. Since we were in kindergarten he'd been a complete outcast. He didn't talk much, he watched his feet when he walked as if they were interesting. He was picked on a lot. But then again, he was weak, an easy target. I'd never seen it with my own eyes, but it was obvious. That was, until the day we actually met.

I'd first met him when I pulled his small body out of a locker. Instead of the half-a-lockers most high schools have, our lockers are jumbo sized. For what reason I've never been sure. We threw in no more than a backpack and an unfortunately high and heavy pile of books. Nevertheless they can easily fit a person and are not difficult to climb in and out of…not that I've tried. Miller has. Anyway, his voice was small, but noticeable. He gave me the combination and I got him out. Adam actually hugged me and since then he thought we were friends. I don't mind, except he thinks we're better friends than we are. I hate to use the word pathetic, but I'd be lying if I said that wasn't what I thought of him.

"Hey, guys." Adam said. He looked at me, his freckled face holding sympathetic eyes. _Here it comes, _I thought. "Hey, man, I heard about you and Carla. Sorry." I gave him a nod. I was in no mood to have it brought up. He picked up the hint. "So, what are you guys up to?" I shrugged.

"Not much, man. Just heading home."

"Yeah, Mr. I-Can't-Live-Without-Her and I haven't been doing much." Miller commented. "Better he stew at home alone instead of making this mall full of innocent people watch." I rolled my eyes but said nothing.

"That's cool. Maybe I could walk with you guys then?"

I said yes. Why not. Miller gave me a look.

Adam is what Miller likes to call a "popper." This means that no matter where we go, no matter what we do Adam always seems to be there. Regardless of what that sounds like, Miller isn't just being a jerk. It's true. After I'd "saved" him, but before we started really hanging out, Adam always seemed to be where we were. For a while I played with the fact that he could be following us. A simple kid lonely enough to turn stalker. That can happen, right? He wasn't the type though. He is easy to read and from what I could see, he was lonely, but not desperate in a freakish way. Together we all headed toward the exit that led out of the food court to the outside.

Before we could reach the door I caught a glimpse of someone familiar. I recognized my cousin Sara and her best friend Nicole. At a glance it looked as if they were simply exiting a store called PINK! A ridiculously girly store decorated in every color save the one it was named for. Looking closer though I could see that Nicole was actually trying to _escape the store while Sara tried unsuccessfully to stop her._

"_Prison break," Miller said having also spotted them. We laughed. Adam laughed along, though I don't think he really understood why it was funny._

_They were headed toward us. Nicole was practically speed walking. I watched them._

_Sara is kind of pretty. That's a lie, actually she's beautiful. But, as I've mentioned, she's my cousin so I don't spend time thinking about it. She has shoulder length blonde hair, the color of a peeled banana, dark blue eyes and a very clean and strait look. Looking at her you would think she'd just walked straight out of some popular fashion magazine. Sara is the world's ludicrous idea of perfection. She's the only one that doesn't see it._

_Sara's one complaint about herself is her height. At five, she started mentioning how important it was to be tall. She wants to be 5' 10", but at thirteen she halted at 5'5". A "disaster" she calls it. But as short as Uncle Neil and Aunt Amanda are it was kind of inevitable. Nevertheless what she lacks in height she makes up for in grace. Sara is a dancer and as such is very lithe. She's completely comfortable with and aware of her body (minus height). She moves with ease and never trips or stumbles. Miller told me once that when she walks, it's almost like a dance…with minimal movement of course._

_He's got a thing for her if you can't tell._

_Sara of course knows this. Mostly because what guy at our school doesn't have a crush on her except for me? She pays them no attention. At this point in her life Sara is looking for everything but a boyfriend. I didn't blame her. In high school we're all no good anyway. Guys I mean. At least, this is what I've heard her tell Nicole._

_Nicole—she prefers Nic—is almost Sara's complete opposite. Nicole is African American and her dark hair runs half way down her back. She gets a little pissed when asked if it's real…it is by the way. She wears it down occasionally, but mostly it's in a ponytail which is how I like it best. She's tall, at least 5' 10", (Sara's only reason to hate her) and very thin with a pretty face._

_Looking at the two of them together, people would probably say that Sara was the prettier one. But I think more so because she is confidence incarnate and people seem to like that. Nicole however has a quiet confidence that comes with a subtle beauty. Her brown eyes are big and warm, her smile is always welcoming. Along with her chocolate skin, you feel like you can trust her. _

_One of their biggest differences is Sara's favorite topic, clothes._

_When it comes to what she wears, Sara is always on top of what's popular. Nicole is simpler than that. Don't get the wrong idea, she doesn't dress like pauper. You're just more likely to see her in a fitted tee than any of the frilly shirts girls usually like to wear. Button up flannels are her favorite, collected from her father's side of the closet. She has at least six or seven of them (yeah, I counted) all different colors. She had one wrapped around her waist, the grey one. It made her look very 90's. I liked it._

_Sara's made it her life's mission to find and destroy those shirts._

_Nicole and I were becoming closer as friends. In between the fact that I had a girlfriend and I wouldn't just hang out with my cousin, I'd never gotten a chance to really talk to her. Especially since Carla could be the jealous type. But I did consider her a friend. She was in a few of my classes, and sometimes we sat together on the bus. She's a little quiet. Recently I'd been spending more time with Sara, and in turn more time with Nicole. Like Miller and I, they couldn't be separated._

_Nicole saw us first and you could see the relief wash over her. We heard clearly what she was running from._

"_Nic, you can't just try on one dress? Just one little sundress? I won't make you buy it, not this time, I swear." Sara pleaded endlessly. Nicole ignored her._

"_Hey," she said finally reaching us. "Someone please kill me." I laughed and Sara said,_

"_Oh, come on. Just one, please? Then maybe you might actually be noticed by guys instead of mistaken for one." though she meant it as a joke, I couldn't help but think that Nicole could never be mistaken for a guy. I opted for a rescue mission._

"_You two headed out?" I directed the question at Nicole letting her know I was trying to change the subject. She smiled. Sara was still pleading in the background. A small, high pitched "Please, please, please!"_

"_I'm trying. And you?" she glanced at Miller and Adam. Miller answered._

"_Yep, got nothing better to do. Staring into space has become the main activity and frankly, I'm bored to death." Nicole gave me a look. She knew about the breakup. Of course she knew. "You two should walk with us. Might not be safe for you all alone, being delicate and all." He laughed and suddenly there was silence. It took me a second to realize that Sara had stopped harassing Nicole, her eyes narrowly focused on Miller. She was giving him a death glare. His mistake? He suggested that Sara was weak._

_Sara is beautiful, blonde and very into fashion, makeup and a number of other things that don't matter. She's a mallrat, and an unbelievably girly-girl. She is all of those things. But if there is one thing she isn't, it's weak. And if you wanted to keep living, you would never even imply that she was. Nicole stood next to me and subtly whispered, "Miller's gonna die." I would have laughed, had it not been so very true._

_Sara took a few steps toward Miller._

"_You aren't seriously suggesting that I can't take care of myself?" She got in his face. "And what, you're going to protect me? Keep me safe from the horrors of the night? Who the hell do you think you are?" Another thing about Sara. She has a temper. "Don't you dare, for one second, think that I won't knock you to the ground little boy…"_

_Miller got a confused look on his face. Most likely wondering what he'd said wrong. Of course._

"_I don't see why not," Nicole stepped in quick sensing that Miller was about to receive a beating. "We're all leaving. We can all just happen to leave together." Sara sighed and rolled her eyes but said nothing else. Nicole gave me a wink then placed her arm around Sara. Sara shrugged out of her embrace and headed towards the exit, angry she'd been deprived of a fight. Especially one with Miller considering she and Carla had similar feelings toward him. It's that way with most girls when it comes to Miller actually. Nicole seems to tolerate him, but I can tell she tries really hard. Miller and Adam followed behind Sara. Nicole sighed._

"_Sometimes I really think you might want to keep a muzzle on hand for him. Maybe only around Sara." Nicole said half joking. I thought about that._

_Miller really does have a big mouth. Often he speaks without thinking, and in my experience he still does no thinking afterwards. It doesn't help that, to Miller, everything was one big joke. There wasn't one thing on this Earth Miller couldn't turn into a punch line, and Sara hated that._

_I'd like to say that it's some kind of defense mechanism. That his jokes really reflect some deep seeded fear he has of accepting reality. That's something his shrink had said anyway. The reality though is he's just a crazy guy. He only wants to laugh, and he wants those around him to join in. Unfortunately he seems to want that all of the time. Finally we followed the others out._

"_So, I heard about you and Carla." Nicole voice brought me from my thoughts._

"_Yeah, I suppose everyone and their mom knows." when I sighed she gave me a friendly shove._

"_Yeah, probably." she joked. I was in no mood to be lighthearted about it. Hearing her laugh made me smile regardless._

"_Yeah." was all I said._

"_I know we don't talk much, and I know this is a little cliché, but if you need someone to listen…" she let the sentence fall. I gave her a genuine smile and nod which she returned. Without another word we caught up with the rest of the group._

_And so, there we were. The five of us—Miller, Sara, Nicole, Adam and myself. Five completely normal, utterly boring teenagers walking home from the mall._

_Sometimes I think about that last moment, the bunch of us just normal. We were all in the middle of our freshman year in high school, pretty much just glad that the most awkward part of life was over. That feels like a million years ago though, as if it was some completely different group of people. And you know what I was thinking about, right then? How was I going to face Carla at school Monday while she traipsed around with her new boyfriend. That was as bad as life got for me back then._

_Had I known just how bad our lives were about to get, I'd never have believed it._

_We walked through the parking lot in silence. I looked over at Nicole. She was staring straight ahead, a small smile on her face. I was going to ask what was so amusing when Miller cut in._

"_So," He slid next to me. "We taking the long way or what?" Sara turned so that she was walking backward._

"_I say we take the site. I've got to get home. Beauty rest and all." she turned and kept walking without missing a step._

"_Okay," Miller said. "Other than the queen herself, does anyone else mind?" I didn't object, Nicole shook her head and Adam did nothing, ready to follow the crowd._

_There are two ways home from the mall, the long way and the short way. The long way, the safe way, consists of two neighborhoods and a ton of yard cutting. Or we could skip that, cut through an abandoned construction site and hope to avoid muggers and/or axe murderers._

"_You know, I'll be grounded till I'm too old to walk if my dad finds out I went through there." Miller said._

"_Yeah, except you're not allowed to complain since you suggested it." Sara answered._

"_Not saying I don't wanna, just stating a fact." he crossed his hands behind his head and walked on…My thoughts began to wander._

_The construction site is abandoned. It's a big place, mostly surrounded by woods with the highway in front separating it from the mall area. There is a broad, open field between the nearest subdivision and the site so it's a very isolated place. Nightly walks through it are an obvious bad idea. _

_Originally, it was supposed to be some new shopping center. Mostly fast food places and more stores for Sara to drag Nicole. For whatever reason though construction was halted and never continued. With all of the half finished office buildings and potential pet stores it was like a ghost town: piles of gravel and rusted steal beams, pyramids of giant concrete pipes, mountains of dirt and deep pits filled with muddy water from the recent rain. All-in-all, it wasn't our best bet if we wanted to get home alive._

_Without warning, I began to think of Carla. I saw her on the arm of that new guy, Robert. I actually felt myself getting angry. I tried to understand why. The breakup was just so sudden. I felt almost stunned, like after receiving an unexpected pop to the forehead. But mostly I hated that she didn't seem to care, because despite what she'd done, Carla isn't a bitch. She was sweet to everyone except Miller in fact._

"_You're thinking about Carla." It hadn't been a question. I turned to see Nicole in step with me. She talked low enough so the others couldn't hear._

"_Yeah, how could you tell?"_

"_The look on your face." we'd just crossed the street to enter the site. "Plus the two of you did just break up today. Kind of obvious." I sighed._

"_I just, I can't get her out of my head, you know?" she shook her head to say she understood._

"_You love her?" she asked. I was shocked by her question. My face must have shown this because she said, "I mean, I'm sorry, that's none of my business." she started to walk ahead and I grabbed her wrist._

"_No, it's fine. I mean, no I didn't…I don't." Nicole watched my eyes trying to find the lie. "The whole thing was just so sudden. One minute we're dating, the next we're breaking up. It's kind of like a deer caught in headlights kind of thing." she nodded again. I wanted to hear her thoughts but she said nothing else and we walked on. For a while we just listened to Sara explain the importance of the right perfume with certain outfits. _

"_I'm pretty sure as long as you don't smell like ass, you're doing pretty well in the smell department. No matter what you're wearing." Miller said. "I've seen some pretty nice looking women who smelled like all the wrong things. That should be illegal." Sara called Miller a moron and they argued. And then…_

_Adam saw it first. He was gazing up at the sky---looking at the stars I guess. Adam would often slip off into his own little world, especially during class. I was never surprised. When you're treated that badly, you've got to have some place to go. He was always like that. When he came to a halt I asked if maybe he'd seen a shooting star. He just shook his head and pointed to a spot in the sky. "Don't think that's what that is." he said. I walked to stand next to him. _

"_What is it then?" I said following his gaze._

"_Just look." he said. His voice was strange, different. Wonder laced his words making me anxious to see what he saw. Seconds later my eyes finally found it. A beautiful bluish-white light streaked across the sky. Zigzagging and going slower as it did. Nicole must have found it then also because all she said was,_

"_Wow---" Lack of movement caught the attention of Sara and Miller._

"_What's up with you guys?" They watched us but we said nothing. I wanted to speak. They had to see for themselves. Finally they looked up. Now we were all staring dumbly at the light in the sky. As it drew closer the light began to take shape. That's when I finally found words._

"_Is that what I don't want to say it is?" I asked. We looked at one another. We were all thinking the same thing…it was scrawled across their faces and mine. However no one had the courage to voice it. Of course they wouldn't, it sounded crazy._

"_It's a UFO!"_

_All eyes were now on Miller._


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"A UFO?" Sara said. "Really, Miller? I know it's hard, but let's stay out of geek-freak mode, okay?" He didn't get angry. He never does.

"How is that geeky?" He asked.

"You're saying it's an alien spaceship. Aliens don't exist." Nicole cut in hoping to end the bickering early.

"Unidentified flying object. Technically he's right." Nicole said. "Whatever's up there could be anything."

"Yeah, actually I was leaning a little toward the alien thing…" Miller laughed.

"Not helping, Miller." Nicole said quietly.

"My bad." he responded.

Sara made a show of rolling her eyes. Something she does when she thinks Miller's being a dweeb.

"You're such a freak sometimes. You think there could be one time in your life where you're actually normal?"

I'm sure there was at least one before I learned to speak…"

Guys," Nicole started again. "Please, not now. Look at that thing. Something's off about it. Doesn't feel right." Everyone's focus was again on the object in the sky.

"Yeah, I can't be the only one getting a creepy vibe." I said.

Having ignored the whole scene, I was still looking dumbly up at the sky. Whatever we were seeing wasn't very big, maybe a little bigger than a school bus. Also it was dark. Other than the swirl of lights, I could tell that it was either black or a very dark blue.

"Should we be worried about the fact that it's headed our way?" Miller asked.

Sara said, "How can you even tell? It's too far away. It could land anywhere around here, it could land nowhere near hear."

"Well, I mean, yeah it's far away but just look…"

"It just seems like it, doesn't it?" I studied the object longer. It did seem to be coming towards us. Slowly but surely it would eventually land and/or crash somewhere around where we were.

We watched and waited in silence as the object got closer and closer. It's shape becoming more distinct. There wasn't much to it, not as far as I could see. No angles, no corners. Simply put, it looked like a black egg…a basic oval covered in light.

I'll admit I was a little disappointed. I might have been looking, for the first time, at a real alien space ship, and it was nothing like I thought it should have been. No weapons, none that I could see, no windows, just flat and well lit.

It almost looked cute. You know, kind of harmless. And defiantly not human.

Finally it was so close we could make out small details. The patterns of light created a labyrinth that ran all along the ship. Could I have seen the other side I'm sure the pattern would have continued. Though I didn't know, I felt like the pattern meant something. Maybe it was apart of their language…whoever they were.

"This is one for the calendar folks," Miller said. "We should grab a camera. We could be about to run into ET's cousin. Do you guys know how much money we could get for footage of a real spaceship?"

"Wouldn't imagine much." Nicole answered. "People are always turning in fakes. Why would anyone believe ours is the real thing?"

"Because it would _be_ the real thing. We'd be famous. Maybe even be featured on the Discovery channel." Miller's eyes lit up and Nicole smiled.

"Is that really your big dream? To be featured on the Discovery channel?" Nicole asked. We all laughed. A nervous laugh considering the context.

"I'm sorry, completely bored with this whole conversation." Sara interrupted. "Miller, unless you just happen to carry a camera in your pants at all times, and I'm sure you don't, let's just drop it, please." Sara said. He did.

We were so far into the conversation that we didn't realize that the ship had stopped and was hovering almost right over our heads, maybe a hundred feet in the air. I jumped at feeling the hair on the back of my neck stand up. The dark hair on my head also stood a little. I shivered.

"That was quick. So, I'm thinking maybe we should go somewhere else." Nicole's voice sounded shaky. Clearly she was afraid.

I almost wanted to laugh. It occurred to me right then that none of us had even thought about running for our lives. Miller had only wanted a camera. Maybe we were just too scared. I know I was. I didn't know what to do with being that scared. I'd never been frightened like that before. I mean, it was just hanging out above us. Like whatever was inside knew we were there. Shouldn't have been a surprise I guess considering we'd been standing around the whole time.

Just then the UFO started to descend. "Holy crap, it's coming down." Sara cried.

It was at that moment that I had to suppress the urge to run home and bury myself in the sheets of my bed (or piss my pants) and just forget about what I was seeing. But I stayed. Not strictly out of fear, but because somehow I knew this was important. I needed to stay and see what happened.

Maybe the others felt the same way because none of us moved an inch. We just stood and watched as the ship hummed and glowed and slowly landed in the wide space between two unfinished buildings. One of which I was sure would have become a bank. Looking closer at the ship I noticed burn marks all along the sides and the top. Also, some of the left side was melted giving the egg an more oblong shape. When it was finally settled on the ground, the ship went dark.

"It's just a big oval. Kind of lame." Sara whispered.

"What were you expecting?" Nicole asked her.

"How about no alien ship period?"

"We should tell somebody," Miller started again. "I mean, this is pretty big, right? Space ships don't just land on a regular basis. Shouldn't we call the cops or the army, the President, Oprah…someone? Am I the only one thinking about the get famous part?" We all stared dumbly at Miller and I had to ask,

"Oprah's more important than the president?" He looked at me like I'd just asked what color blue was.

"Of course. You don't see the president handing out free stuff."

"It's not like you've gotten any of that stuff." Nicole said.

"Yeah, but I can dream." Silence.

"Anyway, we probably should tell someone…" I said. But my words were empty. We weren't just going to walk away from a space ship. And we certainly weren't going to tell anyone. Not if we still wanted to be considered sane.

"Okay, so what are we gonna do here?" Sara asked. She took a step forward and stopped herself. "I mean, shouldn't we try to communicate…say hello?"

"Yeah, you go ring the doorbell. Inform us when you've learned the alien word for hello." Miller said.

"You know, maybe it won't be like one of your lame sci-fi shows. Maybe it'll speak English." Sara said.

"Actually, that would be just like one of my lame sci-fi shows." he countered. "If what answers eats you you'll excuse me if I laugh a little."

A light blue arc of light appeared suddenly, a doorway, opening slowly in the front of the pod. This shut both of them up. My heart froze, my eyes were as wide as dinner plates. The opening looked like a crescent moon, growing bigger and bigger until it was eventually a full, bright circle.

And finally he came out.

"Send out an APB…Gollum has finally escaped the Lord of the Rings." Miller whispered. I would have laughed, except he was right.

The creature looked almost human, but then kind of like certain bones in its arms and legs were broken; they were so bent out of a normal shape. I wondered how he could walk with legs like that. His face was of long, with wide eyes and a tight, long mouth. He had no ears, no nose and, I was surprised to see, five almost normal fingers.

The weirdest thing, though, was that he looked like he might not have any skin. And then he stepped into the light were we could see; he really _didn't_ have any skin. It took everything in me not to throw up. He was all muscle and fat covered by some shiny, thin film. A deformed person flipped inside out. Unfortunately, Sara couldn't control her stomach and Nicole rushed to hold back her hair.

My eyes went back to the alien. The creature was coming closer and closer. He was walking as if the very action pained him. With legs like that who could blame him? Behind me there was heavy breathing.

"Run, run, why aren't we running, we should be running, somebody run!" Miller was panicking. I grabbed him before he could go anywhere. "Dude, he's coming right at us!"

"You wanted to grab a camera five minutes ago." Sara whispered.

"That was before I thought we were all gonna to die!" he whisper/yelled.

_You're frightened. It cannot be helped._ We all jumped. _It's not often you run into something like me._ He laughed. A pleasant sound. _Not if you're human anyway._ I was surprised at what I heard. The alien's voice was so kind. And male, at least by human standards. It immediately made me thing of my grandfather, how he was always soft spoken, the way old-er people usually are.

Before we could respond, though, the alien staggered and fell to the ground. Someone gasped. I hated to think about how the dirt and rocks must have felt on his skinless body. None of us moved, though I knew we all wanted to help.

"Look." Nicole cried. She pointed to a gash at his side. A whole chunk of him was missing. "He's hurt."

_Hurt. _The alien said with another laugh. _Not hurt, just dying is all. _He said getting into a sitting position on the ground. It was hard watching him struggle and without thinking I went over to help him sit up. The others followed. Surprisingly, Miller was the first to speak to him.

"What can we do? We could get an ambulance out here…you know, without giving out the whole alien thing…they might not come after that." Miller said. Sara punched his arm.

"We could at least cover that wound," Nicole said removing her grey flannel and tearing it into makeshift bandages. I guess I could mention here that Nicole's parents are both doctors, though her mother deals with animals and her father with people.

_That is very kind of you. But I will die, of that I am quite certain. _He said it so nonchalantly that it made me cringe. Why was he so calm about the fact that he was dying?

"Don't say that," Sara said. "You're the first alien on Earth. You can't die." She touched him lightly on the shoulder using only her fingertips. Watching her I began to realize that I was upset. Somewhere inside me, it hurt to think of him dying. He'd just gotten here.

_Oh, I am not the first. And I certainly won't be the last. _That certainly wasn't what we'd expected to hear.

"Not the first? There are others here?" Now I was just curious. "Are they like you?" I asked kneeling beside Nicole. He shook his head.

_Not like me, _he said, then cried out in pain. A sound that sent horrible chills down my spine. For a moment, I could swear that I'd actually felt what he was feeling. Pain, a lot of it. And buried somewhere deep in that, sorrow.

_Nothing like me, _he repeated. _They are evil._

"That's sounds pretty bad." Miller said. "Why are they here? What do they want?"

_That's easy. They want to destroy you._

Silence.

It was funny, at that moment, how I just felt that he was telling the truth. Really, who's to say he wasn't lying. He could be our enemy for all we knew. Fooling us into believe he was here peacefully, then blowing our heads off via Mars Attacks! But I believed him. I think I knew he was telling the truth, because he was dying. He was dying and he was trying to warn us of something…something horrible.

_We call them the Paquiin. They are very old, and very dangerous._

"Paquiin," Sara said trying out the word. "How many are there? How long have they been here?" She demanded.

_There are thousands here, maybe more. They have not been here long. I would say, three months._

"Wait, how can that be true?" Miller asked reasonably. "I think someone might have noticed alien beings walking the streets. Certainly isn't something I would miss. I mean look at you…" Another punch from Sara.

_Boy, you would never notice a Paquiin. They are small, similar in build to Earth's cockroaches. _As I watched him everything went suddenly dark, like my brain had shut down. Then a picture slowly came into focus. I saw something resembling a cockroach, but with more legs and, it seemed, no head. Also the color was wrong. It was a dark, muted green. Darkness returned and I was looking again at the alien.

"I'm guessing that was a Paquiin." Nicole said looking at me. I nodded toward her.

_The most you would do at seeing one is let out a high pitched scream and attempt to stomp it dead. At least, that's what we've observed so far._ _Without a host they are pretty much useless. With that many legs they can skitter at high speeds, sure, but that is all. _I was surprised at his sense of humor even though he was dying.

Without warning I felt a blast of pain, then afterwards a rush of sudden sadness. When Nicole placed her hand on the alien's shoulder, I knew this time, for a fact, that those feelings had come from him. His sadness was the most intense. He knew his time was almost up and he was somehow projecting it onto us.

"Well that doesn't sound so bad." Sara said. "We can spray a few roaches, right?" He looked at her.

_I'm afraid it is not that simple. Paquiin enter their hosts, in this case humans, through the ear canal. Once inside, the Paquiin melds with the mind that it enters. In doing this, they are able to tap into the person's mind and find what _makes _that person. Listen carefully; you cannot tell someone who is being controlled from someone who is not. Once inside…the Paquiin will become that person. They may alter them in small ways to suit their needs. Someone like this is called a controller. _Sara's face fell. Finally I said,

"You guys, this is some pretty deep stuff. We aren't the people that need to hear this." I inched closer to the alien. "This is something the government should know. They might believe you and they could help." As I said the words I knew they sounded silly.

_We have tried for so long to stop them. Me and my people, the Gowon._ The alien continued. _We came here in one final attempt to stop them from getting further than they have. Thousands of their ships were waiting in your orbit. Though we knew of the ambush, they tricked us. Three of their biggest battle ships were hidden in craters on your moon. We tried to…but we'd already been heavily damaged. They were able to destroy the entire fleet…my ship, and my crew, is gone, along with the whole fleet._

"How do you mean gone?" Nicole wondered.

The alien's smile was gentle.

_They have weapons, lasers if you will, that destroy whatever is fired upon on a molecular level. For example if a human were to be hit, individual cells would explode making the death very slow and very painful. In the end there would be noting left. Perhaps only microscopic dust._

"But why are they here? What do they want exactly?"

_We do not know for sure, but we are sure of one thing. If the Paquiin take over this planet, there will be no hope for this quadrant. There are so many of you and if the Paquiin succeed, their army will become limitless._

He jerked violently as another spasm of pain ripped through his body. Miller and Nicole bent down to steady him not caring that their fingers were getting covered in something slimy.

"No one would ever believe us," Nicole looked at me and it hurt to hear the hopelessness in her voice. She was shaking her head. "There's no way."

I knew she was right. If the Gowon's ships were completely wiped out, how were we going to convince people that they'd existed in the first place? And on top of that the one alien we knew was dying. They'd think we were nuts, or even worse, on some kind of drug.

"Guys, I don't care if he thinks he's gonna die," Sara said kneeling next to Nicole. "We need to get him to a hospital or something. Maybe Nic's parents could…"

_Now is not the time to worry about me. _Then his eyes became sad. _Perhaps I really have no choice…and you are just children._

"What?"

_Go into my ship. There is a small, plain cube. I feel the Paquiin. They know I am alive and are coming for me._

We all looked at one another.

"Which of us was going into the alien ship?" Miller said. "There's something I never thought I'd say."

"That defiantly says a lot." Sara said. I realized then that everyone was staring at me. I didn't have to ask. Some time in the three seconds since the question they'd all decided that it would be me. _Great, _I thought.

"Why me?" I looked at the ship and then glanced at Nicole.

"It just kind of feels like it should be you." she said giving me a smile. I knew then that I had to go. I'd be embarrassed now if I didn't.

I walked over to the entrance of the ship and peered inside. I was surprised when I didn't see what I'd expected. There were no blinking lights and buttons, no huge screen for transmitting and receiving messages like I've seen in many T.V. shows. The inside of the ship was remarkably simple. It looked almost cozy. Everything was a creamy white color with rounded edges. Also, everything tended to have a round shape. This helped me to see the cube. It was a light sky blue, maybe three inches wide on each side. It was surprisingly heavy for its size.

I walked into the ship. Since there weren't a lot of buttons and things, I briefly wondered if the Gowon controlled their ships with their minds. Or maybe the buttons were hidden. That would make sense. Can't have the silly human falling all over the button marked "missile."

I hesitantly grabbed the cube and headed outside. Suddenly, something caught my eye. It was a small, 3 dimensional picture. Four Gowon stood together. Two of them were smaller than the others; I could only assume this was the alien's family. They were all skinless.

Studying the picture I suddenly became very sad. Here he was, dying, millions of miles away from his family and his home. Dying because he tried to protect us, humans. Suddenly I was very angry at the Paquiin for causing all of this.

I went back to my friends. They'd made sort of a semi-circle in front of the dying creature.

"Here it is," I said as I handed him the cube and took my seat next to Nicole.

_Thank you._

"So, um…the picture you have back there. Is it of your family?"

_Yes, lovely aren't they. I miss them very much._

"I'm sorry," I said. I didn't know what else to say.

_You are all very young, and yet I am afraid that you will be your planet's only hope._

Hearing that made my heart jump. What was he talking about? This guy expected us, the five of us, to go against a practically invisible alien race? That had never exactly been on my to-do list for life.

_What I'm about to tell you will be hard to believe._

"Can't be any harder to believe than what we already know." Miller said.

_Yes, that might be true. This, however, is a little different. Before the Paquiin started their silent attack on your planet, we learned of their plans. Along with trying to stop them, we studied your planet trying to learn why they wanted it. We learned nothing for a very long while. There was nothing spectacular. Your planet is small, life here is simple. Your technology is behind, your location isn't significant…_

"Alright," I interrupted. "Sorry, but I think we get it."

I apologize. We kept them at bay for one year. At some point though we lost the fight and they invaded. Just in time for us to find out why they may have wanted Earth so badly.

We all held our breaths in anticipation. I'll admit that I was curious as to why they would bother with us. We haven't exactly had a history of aliens coming for Earth. At least not for anything sinister.

_We have noted that humans have unique capabilities. Or should I say, a flaw in your genetic code._

Silence.

No one had any idea of how to respond to that.

"Sorry," Miller said, "What exactly do you mean by special capabilities?" The look on the aliens face said he was trying to think of the best way to say.

_All of you, every single human, is capable of doing something…out of the ordinary. Ironically something you would all find unusual._

I wasn't picking up on what he was talking about. Miller was apparently the only one to catch it. "Holy crap! You're trying to tell us we have super powers!" he said excitedly.

"What?"" Sara said. "You can't be serious?" she looked back and forth between the alien and Miller.

_I hesitate to use that word, but yes. This cube was given to me by a powerful reader, a psychic, on my planet. Your power is dormant. Most likely something forgotten as your species evolved. It was specifically made to unlock your genetic code, and activate this gene._

"So you're saying we're a planet full of potential X-Men?" Miller didn't hide the excitement in his voice.

_X-Men? Are you saying there are people with access to what they can do? Are they people you can reach? Could they be of any help? _We all looked at each other awkwardly. No one wanted to explain to the alien that X-Men didn't exist. Nicole came to the rescue.

"So, uh, the Paquiin want to use whatever it is that we have?" I remember thinking nice save.

_No, this is where a piece of good news gets in. The Paquiin have no idea that this gene exists. _A collective sigh ran through the group.

"So, why do they want us?" Sara asked.

_We have no idea. Like I said before, there is nothing that should interest them._

"At least that's something. But the Paquiin can't use what we have?" I asked. "I mean, once they're inside and all?"

_Humans know nothing of what they can do. Therefore, the Paquiin do not know. If they were to find out, the result will be devastating. And I can hear your minds. This is safe, I promise._

_This cube will unlock your power, and that is what you can use to fight the Paquiin. However your identities will need to be hidden if you choose to do this. For this reason, you will also receive a power given to us by our most powerful allies. It is the power to morph._

"Morph?" Miller said. "Morph into what exactly?"

_You need only to touch a creature, to acquire its DNA pattern, and then you can become that creature. Concentration and determination are important, but if you are strong, you can do it. There are problems, dangers even. Those you must learn on your own. But I must say this. When you morph, you must never stay that way for more than two hours or you will be trapped._

"Um, I'm sorry but," Sara stood up. "This is all getting a little bit weird, not to mention a crazy."

"So about what's already inside of us," Nicole interrupted. "What can we do?"

_I am afraid I do not know. Though we are aware that humans possess abnormalities in their genetic makeup, we only know that with the right technology, these abnormalities can be made physical. _He held the cube in front of her. _This cube was specially made to unlock your genetic code and bring forth your abilities. I am giving it to you. Nicole stared at the cube in disbelief._

"_He really isn't joking." Miller said._

"_No," I said quietly. "For once, Miller, there's no joke in it for you."_

"_This is crazy," Miller continued. "I mean this is just downright insane. The whole thing; Paquiin and UFO's and cockroaches taking over our brains and Gowon and super powers? Other than that last one I'm getting a little iffy with this whole thing."_

"_Yeah, this is just a little bit weird," I agreed._

"_We're a little bit beyond the weird point on the crazy map," Nicole said. "But since this isn't a horrible nightmare, I think we'd better handle this."_

"_He's dying," Adam said suddenly. I jumped. He hadn't spoken for a while and I'd forgotten that he was even there. "We should do this."_

"_I'm gonna do it." Nicole said. It surprised me. She's never usually so quick to decide on anything. Especially something of so much importance. I'm sure, though, like Adam, she felt the truth in what the Gowon was saying._

"_We should all decide together," I suggested. "One way or the other."_

"_What is that up there?" Sara asked. She was staring up towards the stars. Very far into the distance, two pinpoints of dark red light were streaming across the sky. They were like the eyes of some daemon watching from above. It gave me the chills. But nothing froze my blood faster then learning what those lights were._

_Paquiin. We heard the word, and we all felt the hatred of the Gowon._


	3. Chapter 3

**Note: **I am very aware that I haven't posted in a maddeningly long amount of time. I'll just be honest and say that I completely forgot about this story. Then, while watching Doctor Who, I randomly thought of it just lying half finished on my computer. I will continue to post chapters, but I don't know how often. However it will never take this long again unless I just decide to quit all together. That won't be a surprise to anyone that cares to know.

**Note 2: **Laugh at alien name changes if you must (my sister did), but I promise everything will be explained in a way that seems almost plausible…=) And I've decided that there will be no Ax equivalent, but instead we will just have Ax because, let's be honest, he was just to awesome to leave out.

**Note 3: **About the secondary powers…it occurred to me that as a kid, while reading the books, I'd always wanted the Animorphs to have some kind of power along with morphing into animals. I always just thought it would be a big help in some situations. If this has been done before, don't tell me about it because I'll read it, and any original idea I had involving my story will fly out of the window of my mind (which is always open) and I hate that.

I couldn't think of a non-lame way to introduce this idea into the story, so what I've come up with will have to do. Again, laugh (or whatever) if you want but I think I've got some pretty cool ideas that just might work. I've not thought heavily on their secondary powers yet (some ideas lay dormant), but if anyone wants to suggest something that would be a big help.

This will all work out, I promise! And if it doesn't…uhhhhhh….

**Chapter Three**

_So, they're finally here…_

Sinister lights glowed in the distance, small as pinpricks. They were steadily growing as they rocketed towards us and I worried for the safety of my friends. If what the Gowon said about the Paquiin was true, we needed to leave and we needed to do it now. I stood.

"Alright, time to go. Miller and Adam, help me carry him." I looked again at the lights. Adam and Miller stood prepared to help me carry the Gowon to where I hoped would be a safe place. "I don't know how far away we can get with him, but I guess if we have to we'll hide."

_Stop. _We all froze. _You cannot help me. Do not forget that I am going to die. I'm supposed to be helping you, remember? _The Gowon said smiling as much as his long, pinched mouth would allow. My eyes went to the wound in his side, partially covered by big pieces of Nicole's gray flannel shirt. He was right. We wouldn't get far with him and if we did, what would we do with him? Whatever we did he would die either way.

I felt helpless and it pissed me off, but he was so damn calm. As if whatever was up there didn't have plans to kill him, or worse. _You must each touch a side of this cube and awaken your power and receive the power to morph.. Save your planet and your people, do not worry about me._ Sara groaned in frustration.

"This make a decision thing is getting old. I'm in, anyone else?" and without hesitation she touched one side of the cube and shrugged. "Look, see? It's no big deal." Nicole went next wordlessly placing her hand on a side of the cube. I took a step forward and looked at Miller and Adam. Miller was grinning like a crazy person but Adam's face was expressionless. I wondered what he was thinking.

"You know if you're for this than I am too." Miller said giving me a mock solute. I laughed.

"Thanks, cadet." I looked at Adam and for a second he looked unsure.

"Come on, man, we can't let the girls outdo us." Miller slapped the middle of his back making him jump. I caught Nicole giving Sara a look that told her now wasn't the time to call Miller on his unintentional sexism.

"Yeah, I'm in." was all Adam said. Finally I made my decision.

Sara and Nicole kept their eyes on me as I walked closer to them and the cube. Their hands were still firmly planted on two sides, a soft otherworldly glow surrounding their fingers. I remember thinking it was now or never. We could give it a shot at saving the world (and maybe go insane and or die), or leave right now and just go insane. I placed my hand firmly on the top of the cube. It was cold, which wasn't what I was expecting. But as my hand lay there a steady warmth began to build. Miller whistled and said, "This is defiantly a moment for backup music." as his hand came down. Adam followed close behind.

"You mean you don't have your own theme music?" Sara looked genuinely surprised.

"I can,"

"No."

Six hands held the glowing cube. We sat for a few seconds in silence as nothing happened and suddenly I realized something important.

"You're name," I blurted. Everyone looked at me with big question marks on their faces. "We never learned your name." Sara gasped and Miller slapped his own forehead. I felt like an idiot. How had I met a creature from another world and not bothered to ask for his name? And did he have a name? Would I be able to pronounce it? Or maybe he'd be like the Doctor and we'd never know.

The Gowon looked amused and said, _I am known as Salar'Mikal. _With his free hand he wrote his name in the dirt so we could see what it looked like. I was surprised to see that there was nothing usual about it. No strange letters or symbols, it was even easy to say and spell…maybe I was expecting too much of my first alien introduction.

I couldn't believe learning his name hadn't occurred to me until then. But I guess "Aliens have come to destroy your planet and only you and four other teenagers have any hope of stopping the invasion," can erase your mind of a few things. At that moment a jolt, electric and uncomfortable, went through my arm and down the length of my body. Without thinking I ripped I my hand from the cube and my friends did the same. They'd felt the shock also. I observed my hand. My palm felt hot and my fingers throbbed.

Hissing at the pain I stared at my hand thinking something had gone wrong.

"Damn, does anyone else feel like they dipped their palm in acid and then smashed their own fingers with a hammer?" Miller asked. The others were also cradling their hands.

_The pain is normal._

"Maybe a little warning next time?" Miller asked as he flexed his fingers.

Salar'Mikal looked at each of us. _It is done. Now, all of you must go before it is too late. _Something in the way he'd said that caught my attention. Then I realized that,for the first time, I could hear the beginnings of fear in his voice.

Ignoring my burning hand I said, "We really do need to get out of here." However I'd said it automatically. No one moved, including me. We were all focused on Salar'Mikal.

I couldn't read minds like he could, but I could feel what my friends were thinking. They wanted to find some way to get him out of here. I knew because I was thinking the same thing. But I also knew that we needed to leave, and he needed us to leave without him. I knew that for my friends, leaving him behind would be difficult, so I ignored the pain in my chest at the thought of leaving him for the Paquiin to find, and stood. "We can't take him and we have to go now. This is his last request, let's honor that." That came out harsher than I'd meant it to. My friends looked at me in surprise. Sara almost looked angry.

_Dustin is right. _It hit me that I'd never given my name. Again, who doesn't introduce themselves to a friendly alien?_ Please go. You five are Earth's only line of defense against the Paquiin. I only hope it is enough._

I wanted to say that of course it wasn't enough. We were teenagers barely in our high school years. Some of us couldn't get homework in on time and now we were expected to save the world. But I kept my mouth shut.

_Now please leave. I would have you bear witness to my end in safety._

My stomach cramped at the sadness in his voice. I began to encouraged my friends to their feet. They stood and I saw that Salar'Mikal was staring hard at me. _Go and find a place to hide. It is too late to run, but they will not suspect that you are here. _They each gave a nod and a smile, and one at a time my friends left to hide behind a group of dumpsters some feet away from us. Which I didn't understand because Salar'Mikal was still speaking…

_Take care of them. Be strong for them. _I wasn't bothered at all when I realized his words had slipped across my mind, that I hadn't heard them out loud. Without warning I was filled with another wave of tremendous sadness. This would be the last time I saw the Gowon alive. I wanted to bring him to safety and I almost offered one last time. He nodded his head in understanding and said, _This is what I want. I would do better to face my enemy in death than bleed cowering in the shadows._

For the first time since I was a kid I wanted to cry. Even in the end his bravery was unwavering, and it gave me a strength I hadn't seen coming. It blew me away and I had to wipe the tears that were running down my face.

He spoke with his thoughts once more and I knew he was including my friends this time. _One more thing. Viscera 3 is the leader of the Paquiin invasion of Earth. Learn that name well for he takes many forms. _When I looked confused he said, _He also has the power to morph._

"Oh shit," I heard Miller yell from behind the dumpsters. Then quick footsteps. "Wait," Miller was suddenly back at my side. "So, I mean what are our powers? What can we do other than morph into animals?" his words were rushed. He was ready to head back to the others.

_I am sorry. I do not know. You will have to discover that on your own. _Miller threw his hands in the air.

"Well that's very superhero movie and or comic book cliché," Miller sounded frustrated. "We are very screwed."

"Guys, get over here!" Sara called. One more look at Salar'Mikal, then Miller and I joined the others behind the dumpsters. And just in time. The ship containing the Paquiin was about thirty seconds from landing.

We waited, silent, and watched as their ship finally touched down.

Our gasps and wide eyes accompanied the landing. The Paquiin ship was huge. So much bigger than the Gowon's ship. Comparing the two would be like comparing the Enterprise from Star Trek to the toy version you get in a Happy Meal. Not to mention it was a thousand times more dangerous looking. Salar'Mikal's ship was round with soft rounded edges. Every part on the Paquiin mother ship came to a very wicked point. As if the ship itself were a weapon. It was actually very sleek looking. I guess a good way to describe it would be something Miller said later on: "Clearly the Escalade of the alien world."

"Wow," Miller said, "Even in the real world the alien ship that belongs to the evil aliens looks evil. You'd think they'd be more original…"

"If you'd like to walk over there and tell a bunch of world stealing aliens that their ship is too cliché for you, please, be my guest. But if not, could you just shut the hell up?" Sara said. He did.

Lights protruding from the front of the ship lit the area around Salar'Mikal just barely. From where we were the place looked like a stage lit by the only lights that hadn't been broken. A big door on the Paquiin ship slowly opened. What came from it was absolute horror.

They leapt from the ship, ten of them. Snarling teeth, blood red and black skin, mouths dripping with some kind of slime…absolutely disgusting. They're bodies were contorted, and out of proportion. They looked like what someone in a lab would get if you crossed and wolf, a grasshopper, and some other creature I couldn't identify. Their skin was an odd mix of scales and fur, as if evolution had confused itself. Limbs came from everywhere and every few seconds one of them would make a short screeching sound. They stood upright but just barely. They were way worse off than the Gowon.

"What the hell are they?" Sara asked.

_They are called Linyxa. _The Gowon's voice was in my head again. Everyone looked surprised and a little frightened. Everyone except Nicole.

"So he is using his mind to speak to us…" Nicole said. She gave Miller a look. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"I'll never call you crazy again, alright?" She looked satisfied and the Gowon continued.

_The Linyxa are unbelievably evil. But despite their appearance, their main weapon is the spoken word._

"Those things can speak?" Miller said.

_They release a toxin that makes you susceptible to their words. They do not do a lot of killing. They like to persuade their victims to kill themselves. They find it more entertaining. However do not be mistaken. They will kill you themselves if they have to. _I shivered at his words. It hadn't occurred to me that we'd be dealing with something other than the Paquiin. Seeing the Linyxa seriously made me rethink this whole save the world thing.

Once the Linyxa had lined themselves up, five on each side of the open door, what came out next wasn't much easier on the eyes or my nerves.

These creatures were tall, at least seven feet, with brownish-green skin and long necks that could rival the giraffe. That wasn't so bad really. What was attached to these new creatures is what made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. Protruding from the creatures arms, knees, forehead and wrists were some of the deadliest looking blades I'd ever seen. Every edge was sharp, ready to make coleslaw out of the nearest living thing. I prayed to God it wasn't one of us. I remembered thinking that we wouldn't stand a chance if we had to go up against one of those creatures. Maybe we'd be lucky and we wouldn't have to find out. Miller's voice snapped me from my thoughts.

"So, if I wet myself, that's gonna be okay with everyone, right? Because I'm so ready to just let it go." For a second I thought he'd do it. I looked at Sara expecting some snide remark about how she'd kill him if he did. She surprised me instead when she took his hand in hers.

He barely noticed it then but he would have a field day later.

I tuned to Nicole on my right to see how she was holding up. She was breathing slowly entirely focused on what was going on in front of us. Her face though was strange. There was no fear, she was thinking. And by the intensity of her look she was thinking very hard. Before I could ask what was wrong the Gowon spoke again.

_So another race has fallen,, _Salar'Mikal's voice held an enormous amount of regret._ The Hork-Bajir were once a very peaceful race. Their blades look lethal, but on their home planet, they were used to strip the bark from trees. _I tried to imagine a Hork-Bajir going at a tree…and then the tree morphed into my face. _You are right to fear them now. Were they themselves they would not harm you._

Of course he was telling the truth. However, it was very hard to believe. They were walking weapons. Just looking at them I would assume they were just cutting everything in their path, be it intentional or accidental. Everything about them screamed danger.

Talk about judging a book by its cover.

But I could think no more on the subject because something else was leaving the ship. I decided that being surprised was no longer an option. I couldn't jump or do a silent gasped at everything that walked through that door. I'd wear myself out. Except I did jump.

This new creature was blue. Defiantly the most noticeable thing until it stepped more into the light. This new alien was blue…and had the body of a horse…with the torso of a man…a scorpion tail…and eyes on the top of two long antenna on his head. Immediately the word centaur entered my brain. We were looking at a big, blue centaur. I'll admit that, at first, I was less afraid of this new creature. He looked strong, his face kind. And no one that shade of blue could be evil, right?

_Viscera 3! _I jumped again. The Gowon sounded surprised and very, very scared. His eyes were huge as he stared unmoving at the blue centaur.

"That's Viscera 3?" Nicole spoke suddenly. "Not what I was expecting."

_I should have known,_ Obviously Salar'Mikal hadn't expected the Viscera to show up. And that definitely was not good for us. _You must run… _The Gowon's voice was barely a whisper, and then, _You must run! _Now I was freaking out. I was virtually paralyzed by the mad fear I felt from the Gowon. Not to mention what I was producing on my own. What did we do? Clearly Salar'Mikal wasn't thinking and was telling us to run out of terror. But if we bolted we'd be seen, maybe chased down, most defiantly killed. Miller made a run for it.

"No!" I whispered as loud as I could while Sara grabbed his legs. He hit the ground hard.

"No?" he angrily brushed dirt from his pants and shirt. "He just told us to run. I think that means it might be okay with him if we do." he shot Sara a dirty look. One she gladly returned.

"We can't. He's just scared, Miller. We'd be seen if we tried to run now." Nicole answered, her voice calm. "Please, just wait. We'll get out of here, I promise." The look in her eyes said she didn't believe her own words. But it was enough for Miller. He nodded then sat down. I thought I saw the slightest hint of a pout.

No one moved, us or the aliens, as Viscera 3 walked slowly toward the Gowon. His swagger made me angry. He was gloating. The Gowon was dying and this was clearly the best day of the Viscera's life. It made me feel sick.

Absolutely pathetic. Suddenly a new voice crashed into my head. This one was like a migraine and made my head want to explode. The voice was so proud and cruel. Immediately I knew the Viscera was speaking. My body tensed, ready for another blast. If covering my ears would have helped I'd have done it. You really are pitiful, Prince Mikal. You tried so hard to protect them. These insignificant beings. He made a vague gesture that suggested humans as a whole. And now look at you, dying. All of your efforts have been in vain. How wonderful. Surprised, I watched Salar'Mikal struggle to his feet. He stood, not as tall as the Viscera, but he was trying to look just as strong. As if he didn't have a gaping hole in his side.

Once he stood erect, I waited for him to respond. Instead the Gowon spoke to us.

_Do not fear. He does not know of your presence. This is a great moment for the Viscera. He broadcasts freely. _I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding._ What you see before you is the body of an Andalite. They are the reason you now possess the power to morph. Not many of them are left now. He is the only Paquiin in possession of an Andalite body. Be glad for this. _Maybe that should have been comforting. It wasn't.

After everything we've been through, you have nothing to say? Viscera 3 almost sounded disappointed. Very well, and with that he backed slowly away from the Gowon. But before he could take a third step, Salar'Mikal spoke.

_You can do whatever you like to me. And for the time being you may think you have this planet in your grasp. But I promise you, Viscera 3, that in the end, you will lose. My people, the last Andalite resistance and maybe even the Earthlings themselves, _will _stop you. _His voice was strong. Stronger than I thought it should have been. The Viscera laughed.

I will take those as your final words. And without warning, Viscera 3 began to change.

The first thing to go was his color. The blue of the Andalite was becoming muddy, almost black, the fur disappearing, replaced by a tough looking skin. And he was growing. The Viscera was growing way beyond his normal size, and it looked like he would never stop. But when his body finally did, his head kept going. Growing bigger and bigger as it produced impossibly long fangs.

And there were arms, so many arms. Thick and long, they reminded me of the tentacles on an octopus. They waved around his body reminding me of a videogame boss that, until it's turn to attack, is programmed to do nothing but wave its tentacles menacingly.

When he'd finally completed his transformation the Viscera resembled something like a giant squid, with an unbelievably huge head.

I'm not sure what my thoughts were at that time. Maybe I wasn't thinking about anything. I guess absolute and complete terror doesn't produce thoughts, just feelings. Because I remember feeling scared out of my mind, I remember feeling nauseous and like my mind couldn't quite comprehend what had happened. One minute the Viscera is this strong, elegant centaur, the next he looks like a twenty foot squid with teeth that almost reached the ground.

_Sara gagged next to me. She'd already thrown up once. I had no idea she had such a weak stomach. "That was so disgusting," Sara whispered. "I never want to see anything like that again."_

"_I'm with you on that one." Nicole said._

_For a while nothing happened, no one spoke. This included the big group of aliens in front of us. I thought about taking this opportunity to leave while they were distracted._

_You look surprised. The Viscera's voice exploded in my head. Before you die, you should know that as we speak, your planet is being ravaged by Paquiin forces. However, your frail bodies are useless, infesting them would be pointless. We will kill every living thing. Without hesitation the Viscera reached out one of his tentacle arms and grabbed Salar'Mikal by the foot. I winced when his head smacked the ground and watched as the Viscera lifted the Gowon high in the air._

"_What the hell is he doing?" Miller asked. The Viscera kept lifting the Gowon higher and higher. Was he going to drop him, throw him across the site? But why? Then my stomach clenched as I realized what was going to happen. The Viscera opened his mouth wide, ready to drop the Gowon inside. "Oh shit, no." Miller looked away. "What the fuck? He's gonna fucking eat him?" We all looked away not willing to take in what we knew would come next. But something told me to look back and to do it quick. When I did a terror like nothing I'd felt that night lodged itself in my throat._

_As Salar'Mikal fell into the open mouth of the Viscera, an object slipped from around the Gowon's waist. It floated gracefully to the ground and a Hork-Bajir scooped it up with one large hand._

"_He ate him. Oh my god he ate him." I knew that Sara was speaking, but it was blocked out by the sheer terror I felt as I realized what had fallen from Salar'Mikal._

"_We need to leave," I said. "We need to leave now!" I stood low on my feet, ready to start sprinting, expecting the others to follow._

"_We can't leave, Dustin, they'll see us." Sara was becoming hysterical, but we didn't have time for that._

"_We have to leave now!" Why wouldn't they just move? Panic put me on the verge of yelling. Of course this would have been counter productive._

_Sara said, "Dustin, they don't know we're here. Let's stay quiet and maybe they'll leave and we can get the hell away from here." Sara looked mad as hell. Looking back on it, I think maybe she thought I was loosing it. That I was going to give us away. Had I known that then I would have attempted to look more calm._

_I tired again to get up hoping that they would just shut their mouths and follow me. But I thought better of it and tried to tell them what was wrong. "They'll see…" But Miller held me down and clamped his hand over my mouth._

"_Dude, shut the fuck up and be still. I'm scared too but you've got to pull it together." this from the guy who turned tail not three minutes ago. I looked to Nicole for help, but she was focused on the Viscera. Her eyes were wide and she turned to me with an overwhelming amount of fear in her eyes._

"_Dustin's right, they've noticed, we have to run." she said quietly._

"_Noticed what? What is wrong with you two?" Sara's face was red with anger._

_Nicole got just as angry back. "They've noticed my shirt!"_

_No sooner had to words left her mouth, we heard the Viscera._

_Human! Humans are here. Find them. Now! The Viscera gave the order and every alien we'd seen come from the ship ran in different directions. And they were looking for us._


End file.
